Religious Studies
Academic Department Introduction
The study of religion at Wellesley is historically grounded and deeply interdisciplinary. Many of our courses explore the texts and contexts associated with major religious traditions: Buddhism, Hinduism, the religions of China and Japan, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Other courses adopt thematic and theoretical approaches. Conceiving of religion as a central element in human culture, we study the complex intersections among religion and the visual arts, architecture, music, theater and dance, politics and government, law and ethics, popular culture, philosophy, and science. In addition, our students engage in explorations of social justice—from perspectives drawn from inside and outside religious traditions.
The department works closely with several related programs, including the programs in East Asian studies, Jewish studies, Middle Eastern studies, and South Asia studies. Every member of the department is affiliated with at least one interdepartmental program, and we frequently collaborate in guiding students’ work, programming, and special events.
Learning goals
Describe and interpret one of the great religious traditions or a central theme in two or more traditions.
Analyze and assess sacred texts and religious writings, including their specialized rhetoric, forms, and contexts.
Identify and think critically about the roles of religion in historical contexts and intersections of religion with other cultural phenomena.
Programs of Study
Religious studies major and minor
Students employ critical methods used in contemporary scholarship on religion.
Course highlights
Study of the New Testament
REL105
The writings of the New Testament as diverse expressions of the Jesus Movement and early Christianity. Close reading of the texts, with particular emphasis on the Gospels and the letters of Paul. Treatment of the historical, theological, and literary dimensions of the texts, as well as of methods of interpretation. The beginnings of the break between the Jesus movement and Judaism and the challenges posed by Roman rule will be specially considered.
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Muslim Ethics
REL267
How have Muslims, over the course of a millennium and a half and in strikingly different environments and circumstances, conceived of human nature, moral conduct and responsibility, and the good life; and how have they formulated, debated and applied ethical principles? This course explores these questions with reference to the rich materials that have informed the religious cultures of Muslim communities, including the sacred sources of the Qur'an and the Prophet's example, the reception, interpretation and development of late antique moral philosophies and wisdom literatures, the evolving corpora of legal and theological scholarship, and the elaboration of rationally based ethical systems. Issues include charity, the environment, animal welfare, economics, gender and sexuality, medicine and bio-ethics, conflict and dispute resolution. (MES 267 and REL 267 are cross-listed courses.) -
This seminar considers the difficult paradox of the Bible as both a tool for colonization and decolonization. We will frame this problem in three parts. First, we will engage post-colonial theory to interrogate the biblical text as a record of interaction with the various empires of the ancient Middle East, North Africa, and Mediterranean. Second, we will interrogate the Bible as a tool of empire and the European and colonial agenda, with a focus primarily on British, French, and Spanish despoliation of Africa, the Middle East, and Central America. Finally, we will explore the Bible as a tool for decolonization by engaging biblical interpretation by marginalized groups (womanist, mujerista, indigenous, and queer approaches). Our goal is to investigate the role of the Bible as a source of both harm and healing in the history of the world. (PEAC 346 and REL 346 are cross-listed courses.)
Research highlights
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Professor Stephen Marini and student interns completed a three-year digital humanities mapping project in which they compiled a census of all religious congregations in colonial and revolutionary America from 1725 through 1790 and prepared this data for mapping.
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Professor T. James Kodera’s research focuses on Watsuji Tetsuro’s work on Dogen (1200–1253), a Zen monk/priest who brought the Soto (Chinese: Ts’ao-tung) School of Zen out of China. Watsuji was a 20th-century Japanese philosopher, ethicist, and cultural historian whose book, Shamon Dogen, was instrumental in securing Dogen’s status in the larger intellectual world in Japan.
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Professor Louise Marlow’s recent publications include Medieval Muslim Mirrors for Princes: An Anthology of Arabic, Persian and Turkish Political Advice (Cambridge University Press, 2023). Her current research explores translations between Arabic and Persian in 14th-century Iran.
Opportunities
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Elisabeth Luce Moore ’24 Summer Research Internships in Religion
Students conduct research on a project proposed by individual Religious Studies Department faculty members. Typical projects include bibliographic research, online database investigations, archival work in campus and local libraries, special computer work such as mapping, and, occasionally, translation.
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Severinghaus Summer Internship Program in Ministry/Human Services
Funding from the department enables students to engage in research or hands-on work through unpaid positions with domestic or international humanitarian or social action agencies, charitable or religious organizations, or policy-based institutes. Recently funded projects include work with the Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS, the Holocaust Museum LA, the Street Child Project, and Wheelchairs of Hope.
Beyond Wellesley
Beyond Wellesley
The intellectual breadth and depth of religious studies help prepare our graduates for graduate-level education in many fields, including business, law, medicine, and public service, and for many careers. Recent graduates have found employment in the nonprofit/NGO sectors, investment or portfolio management, K–12 and other types of education, the performing and fine arts, social assistance, journalism, and media and publishing.
Recent Employers
For more
Our newsletter
Published annually, our department newsletter features recent or upcoming classes, students’ first-hand accounts of summer internship experiences, interviews with faculty and alums, and more.
Department of Religious Studies
106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481